Lost and Found
by Wolf6Fox
Summary: Naruto, Sasuke, and Kiba get lost in the bad part of town after a night of partying. Naruto asks a homeless Gaara for directions. After Gaara leads the boys out of the ghetto, Naruto buys the redhead something to eat and offers him a warm place to stay for the night. AU. Yaoi. NarutoxGaara.
1. The Pariah

Lost & Found

Chapter #01: The Pariah

Naruto shivered, pulling the zipper of his black and orange jacket up to his neck. It was still early into fall but the nights were already getting colder. It didn't seem to bother Kiba, but this wasn't really a surprise. That man was an animal. Of course, the fur-lined hoodie helped too. Sasuke on the other hand was freezing his ass off. Naruto let a small chuckle escape his lips. That bastard, for whatever reason, always had the need to show off his well defined abs to the world.

"What's so funny?" Sasuke questioned in an annoyed tone.

"Oh, just wondering why you decided it would be a good idea to walk around town without a shirt _**and**_ do it in this weather." Naruto replied with a teasing voice.

"I have a shirt." was Sasuke's answer.

"You talking about that little white piece of fabric you have draped around your shoulders? That's not a shirt...it's more like a man's version of a shawl."

"Or a crop jacket." Kiba chimed in. Both Naruto and Kiba burst out into a roaring laughter. Sasuke's scowl got even deeper before he replied with a short and blunt "Fuck you."

The three young men fell into a comfortable silence. Their night was winding down, and they would soon all go home for the night. Just hours before, they were partying at someone's house. Naruto didn't know whose house, it was one of those 'friend of a friend of a friend' situations. Like other parties of similar nature, there was a lot of people, a lot of loud music, and a lot of underaged drinking. Not to mention a lot of bad dancing. To say the least, the three of them were pretty much drunk.

Well, perhaps only two of them. Naruto had a good buzz going on, but he wasn't plastered. Which is why he would be the first one to take a good look at his surroundings and realize he had no idea where they were or where they were going. With a slightly hesitant voice, Naruto voiced his concerns "So...one of you knows where we are, right?"

"C'mon Naruto, don't be a pussy." Kiba replied.

"I'm not a pussy!"

"hm. Scaredy cat. Don't worry so much, everything looks different in the dark." Sasuke added.

"Looks different? How can something look different when we've never even seen this area before?!"

"Calm down, will ya? I recognize this place from the drive over here. I know exactly where we are, trust me." Since Kiba sounded so sure, Naruto let the issue slide. He wasn't in a hurry to get home and he liked the idea of exploring unfamiliar parts of the city.

They had been wondering around a quiet residential area, nothing too extravagant. It was quaint, and Naruto happened to like quaint. He was having a good time, chatting and laughing with Kiba and Sasuke about random things. Next thing he knew, he was in the middle of a bleak industrial area. He slowly came to a stop, shocked at how he didn't even notice when this shift in environment had occured. He knew, absolutely knew, they didn't pass anything like this on their way over to the party. "We're lost."

Sasuke and Kiba replied with a long stretch of silence, taking the opportunity to really take a good look at their current location. "What?" Sasuke eventually asked.

"We're lost?! How the fuck did that happen?!" Kiba shouted with over enthusiasm.

"How did this happen?" Sasuke asked, mainly to himself.

"It's Lee's fault!" Kiba declared.

Naruto would agree with him on that one, even if Kiba was completely ignoring his previous 'I know exactly where we are' comment. They had originally gone to the party with Lee, seeing as Lee was the only one that knew how to get there. So they naturally assumed that Lee would give them a ride back. Only, he left about an hour after they arrived at the party. His excuse had something to do with Tenten, but Naruto wasn't really paying much attention at the time. Sometime later, when the three of them were all partied-out, they just started walking around the city. None of them had the presence of mind to care where they were going.

"It's no big deal. We can just get a cab." Naruto offered.

"Right, a cab." Sasuke spoke under his breath, "Do you see one?" Once again, silence ensued. Taxis are usually all over the city, but Naruto couldn't remember the last time they actually saw one. It was a while back, when they were still within the vicinity of the party. But, stupid them, they've made a lot of twists and turns since then.

"We could call one, right?" Kiba asked, his voice laced with mild panic.

"Yeah, sure...if we had phones." Sasuke snidely replied, directing a glare towards Naruto.

"Hey, I didn't force you guys to bet your phones!" Naruto defended himself.

"It was your idea to join the poker game!" Sasuke retorted.

"Bastard."

"Idiot."

With an exaggerated sigh, Naruto attempted to lift the mood, "Let's just keep going. We're bound to come across one. And if we don't, for some totally unrealistic reason, we could always ask someone for directions."

"That...sounds good." Kiba not so convincingly agreed.

"Whatever." was Sasuke's response. The three of them continued on their walk, with Naruto in the middle pretty much keeping Kiba and Sasuke on their feet. Those two weren't exactly graceful when inebriated.

They walked for a long time. Gradually, the streets got darker and the buildings more neglected. The metallic, stale air of the industrial area turned into the smell of something pungent and sickening. "Shit, we must be in the slums." Sasuke remarked.

"You think?!" Kiba responded. "This is just great, just fucking great."

"We can still just ask someone for directions." Naruto remarked.

"Are you crazy? This is the ghetto!" Sasuke screeched, while trying to keep his voice down.

Naruto took in a slow, deep breath. He wasn't in the mood for a bitch fest. He knew Sasuke and Kiba had probably never seen an environment like this. Both of them came from wealthy backgrounds - Sasuke's brother was the CEO of Uchiha Corp and Kiba's family owns a successful veterinary clinic.

"Sasuke's right. We'll just get shot at before we even get a word out." Kiba stated.

"No one's gonna shoot us." Naruto said flatly. Although he wasn't as ignorant as his two friends, Naruto knew it was probably not a good idea to hang around this area - especially at night.

"Hey, you three want some company?" A woman spoke beside the trio, quickly startling Naruto from his inner musings. She was probably in her early 20's. Based on her revealing outfit, body language, and insinuations, it was obvious she was a prostitute. Before he could open his mouth, Kiba had already replied, "That's sick, lady. Not in a million years, who knows what diseases you're carrying?!".

Naruto jabbed Kiba in the side of his ribs and quickly replied, "Sorry. What my friend here means is 'thank you for the offer, but we're going to have to politely decline'." Naruto finished his sentence with a large grin and then quickly urged his two friends on.

"What the fuck was that?" Kiba demanded, after they had walked a considerable distance away.

"Yeah, how could you be so polite to that thing?" Sasuke added.

"That _**thing**_ is a person. A person caught up in an unfortunate situation." Naruto replied.

"So you want us to feel pity. Nobody's forcing her to do that." Sasuke replied.

Naruto let out a sigh. Although he lived a very comfortable lifestyle now, this wasn't always the case - he knew a little bit about the streets. It's surprising how one city could be so segregated. And unlike Sasuke and Kiba, Naruto knew the realities of human trafficking. He also knew that hookers were usually being watched by someone. They were, after all, considered property. What's more, whoever has ownership of this 'commodity' usually does business in other related criminal activities. All in all, not guys you want to mess around with. Better to be safe than sorry.

"Let's just keep going. Maybe we could turn around?" Naruto suggested.

"Yeah, doubling back sounds like a good idea. We'll still be lost but at least we'll get out of this shithole." Kiba replied.

"Hn." was Sasuke's reply. "But let's avoid the walking STD while we're at it."

"Alright" Naruto frustratedly sighed out. As was requested, Naruto attempted a detour. It soon became apparent they had become even more lost. The buildings were even more run-down than before and littered with graffiti that proudly displayed gang insignias. Every so often, there was the shady silhouettes of two people on a street corner exchanging suspicious looking items. Finally, after passing a homeless campground, Sasuke finally decided to speak up, "What the fuck Naruto? I thought you were getting us out of here?!"

"You guys bitch a lot when you drink." Naruto observed, but didn't otherwise comment.

"But seriously, you know where we're going right?" Kiba asked.

With his millionth sigh of the night, Naruto stopped walking. He looked around, but wasn't able to see much due to the lack of light. However, a small shock of red caught Naruto's attention. Upon closer inspection, he was able to spot the figure of a male silhouette peeking into a large dumpster. Based on the approximated height and build of the guy, Naruto guessed he was about their age. The figure didn't seem dangerous or menacing - probably because it was so small compared to Naruto himself. Finally admitting defeat to himself and fed up with their current situation, Naruto marched over to the other male. Sasuke seemed to know what he was thinking and quickly grabbed Naruto's arm. "Idiot, you're going to get us robbed. Or killed." Sasuke seethed.

Naruto shook himself free and proceeded to walk up to the redhead. "Hey, would you mind helping us out?" The young male turned around and faced Naruto, a blank expression on his face.

Naruto took that as a good sign and continued. "My friends and I are a little lost. Could you tell us how to get to the north side of town?" The redhead continued to respond with a blank stare. Naruto cocked his head to the side and let out a low "hmmm," before stating "Of course, I'd be happy to buy you dinner or something. My treat for helping us out."

A small glimmer of emotion briefly crossed the redhead's face, before his features settled back into disinterest. He slowly moved his eyes to take a look over at Sasuke and Kiba. Naruto followed his gaze and then turned back around to face the smaller boy. He let a gentle smile grace his lips. "Don't mind them. They're harmless." he promised. Without a word, the redhead started walking away. Naruto's smile slowly formed into a rejected frown. Shortly after, the redhead paused briefly before turning around and giving Naruto an annoyed glare.

Realization dawned on the blonde and his mood once again lifted. He quickly turned to his friends and happily shouted, "Hey guys! He's gonna help us out, we just gotta follow him."

Naruto's enthusiasm dropped a little after noticing the look on Sasuke's face. He looked like he wanted to gouge Naruto's eyes out. As for Kiba, he looked very apprehensive. As the two boys made their way over to Naruto, Sasuke declared "I'm _**not**_ following that low life _**anywhere**_." Naruto flinched a little bit, very aware that Sasuke's words were within the redhead's hearing range.

The blonde liked to think of himself as a composed, easygoing person - a forgiving person - and not one to hold onto grudges. In fact, he prides himself in giving people second chances - even third, fourth, and fifth chances. But he could feel himself losing the last ounces of patience he had for his two friends. "Look, I don't care what _**you**_ do. I'm going to follow...uh, Red here, to the northern part of town. If you two think you can find your way home all on your _**own**_ , then by all means, _**do**_ it." And with that, Naruto shoved his hands into the pockets of his jacket and tailed after the redhead. Sasuke and Kiba reluctantly followed him, just as Naruto knew they would.

It took about one and a half to two hours to get to the north side of Konoha City. The walk was silent...very, very, silent. Naruto could tell that Sasuke and Kiba were talking to each other, probably talking shit about the redhead. Now, finally, they were in an area that Naruto recognized. Even better, Naruto spotted a taxi coming down the street. He hailed down the cab, and turned to Sasuke and Kiba. "Well, here's your ride. Hop on in."

"Yo, aren't you coming with us?" Kiba asked, a little confused.

"No, I have to fulfill my promise first."

"You're really going to chose to stay in that freak's company. How can you handle standing so close to something that smells like week old sewage? If he wants something to eat so bad, then he should get a fucking job like everybody else. Fuckin' slob."" Sasuke sneered, while climbing into the backseat of the taxi.

Kiba joined the raven-haired male in the cab, adding "Dude, you know you're going to end up dead in ditch somewhere, right?"

Naruto's smile faulted, but he didn't say anything. Instead, he handed the taxi driver some cash with a short "keep the change" followed by two addresses. He may have lost his phone in the first round of poker, but he had actually won a fair amount of cash in the second and third rounds. He felt a little sour about having to spend it so fast. The blonde watched the yellow car drive out of sight, before turning to face the younger man.

"Hey, sorry about that. They were being complete assholes. They were drunk so..." Naruto let his sentence hang before changing the subject. "I was thinking we could go to the burger joint across the street, that okay? I think it's the only thing open this time of night." he asked. The stoic male gave a short nod, so Naruto started to move towards the fast food restaurant. The redhead trailed behind the blonde, intentionally keeping a five foot distance.

Naruto was overjoyed to enter the heated building. He quickly rubbed his hands together, trying to warm them faster. He noticed that people began to stare at the redhead when he'd entered. Naruto turned to the other male and asked, "You see anything you like on the menu?". The redhead looked up at said menu, then lowered his head back down and looked towards Naruto. "...I can't read."

It was the first time Naruto had heard him speak. His voice was low and monotone; Naruto thought it suited him. He was a little shocked at the redhead's admittance and tried not to show any signs of pity. He knew from personal experience that when you're living that type of life - the street life - pity is the last thing you want to see on another person's face. More than anything, this made Naruto even more interested in the redhead. Usually street kids were runaways who left home in their early teens. In this day and age, being illiterate was practically unheard of - especially for someone the redhead's age. Naruto found himself pondering how it was possible. He couldn't image a little child living and growing up on the streets. It could be possible he came from a very poor family. But still, all education up until the college level was paid for by the government - and mandatory.

With increased interest, Naruto looked over the smaller male. Now that they were in an area with decent light, Naruto took the time to get a good look at the redhead. He was pale, almost sickly pale, and too thin for Naruto's liking. The black and deep purple bags under his eyes were an obvious hint that he didn't get much sleep. And his clothes were in pretty bad shape. He had a thin black hoodie littered with holes and tears. The shirt he had underneath was in even worse shape and didn't even have sleeves. His pants were baggy and about two sizes too big. He also had what looked like cardboard duct taped to the bottoms of his feet. All in all, he was pretty much exposed to the elements.

But not everything about the redhead was depressing. He also had the most amazing sea-foam colored eyes and his hair was a much more vibrant shade of red than the blonde had originally thought. The 'ai' tattoo on his forehead was even more vivid. Aware that his staring was close to giving off the 'creeper' vibe, Naruto finally spoke up. "That's okay. If you want, you can choose someplace to sit down and I'll order the food."

The redhead remained still for a few seconds before walking towards the back of the building, choosing the most secluded area he could find. Naruto approached the young female cashier, ready to order. Before he could get a word in, a middle aged woman with the 'manager' name tag immediately scolded Naruto. "Listen, we can't have homeless people thinking they can loiter around here. It'll be bad for business."

With a deepening frown, Naruto responded "I have money."

"You have money. The other one doesn't. Don't start bringing them in here." the woman sternly spoke.

Trying to keep his calm, Naruto replied in a severe and sarcastic tone "I'm sure your boss would like to hear about how you're turning away paying customers. And I'll bet he'll love to hear the reasons behind why you're responsible for a discrimination lawsuit against this place. Hell, maybe I'll take a walk down to the campus tomorrow and get a bunch of grassroots activists to picket the hell out of this place. I'm sure that'll even get the attention of the local news. And -"

Naruto's rant was cut off by the manager, "Fine. But just for today." The women, now obviously pissed off, left to do who knows what in a back office. Once she was out of sight, some of her employees gave Naruto a thumbs up. A short awkward moment occurred between Naruto and the young cashier, before the girl spoke up "Uh...hello. Welcome to Burger Nation, may I take your order."

About ten minutes later, Naruto was carrying a couple of trays to the table where the redhead was seated. It was a two person booth next to a window, near the back exit. After taking the seat opposite of the smaller male, Naruto grabbed a double bacon cheeseburger. "This is mine, and so are these fries. But everything else is for you. I also got us a couple of bottled waters. Oh, and I got you this milk." Naruto informed. He had gotten the redhead a bit of everything, trying to pick the healthiest options available. So he ended up ordering a chef salad, a grilled chicken BLT, a fish sandwich, a couple of grilled pineapple spears, a yogurt,, and some apple slices with caramel dip.

The redhead began with the closest item, the pineapple spears. After a couple of minutes of silent eating, Naruto questioned "So, what's your name?"

The redhead stopped chewing and slowly raised his eyes to look at Naruto. "...Gaara."

"Gaara? That's a cool name. I'm Naruto. Naruto Uzumaki." Gaara went back to eating, choosing not to say anything or even acknowledge that Naruto had spoken. The blonde wasn't the type of person to sit around in silence for long, so he decided he would make conversation - even if it was only one-sided. "Were you born in Konoha? I was. But I didn't stay here. I moved around a lot. I spent some time in Suna and Kiri, and even lived for a while in Iwa. But I missed Konoha. Not that I really had any memories of it, but my parents lived here and I was born here. I like this city the most. I moved a lot because I went to a lot of different foster homes. I'm an orphan. But eventually I got adopted." Naruto spoke, never dropping his trademark smile.

"Suna."

"Suna? You've been there?"

"...I was born there..."

"Oh, really. So we have that in common! Well, I wasn't born there. But I did live there. And I guess I already told you that. Do you miss it?" Gaara didn't answer Naruto's question, which was okay with the blonde. Naruto got the impression that the redhead was the quiet type. "I liked it. I miss the smells and the atmosphere of the marketplace the most. But I don't miss the weather. It got sooo hot! But that's not surprising, since it's in the middle of the desert and all. I mean, who decided it would be a good idea to build a huge city in the one of the hottest places on earth?!"

Seconds after Naruto finished his rant, Gaara began a short series of not-so-healthy coughing. Naruto furrowed his brows. It didn't look like Gaara had choked on anything or swallowed wrong. It sounded more like he was getting sick. Or maybe he was already sick. The redhead did look quite pale and exhausted. Naruto felt a pang of guilt. He took advantage of the redhead and his situation. When he first saw Gaara peeking into that dumpster, he assumed that the redhead was looking for something to eat. He knew that, more likely than not, Gaara would agree to help him out if he offered him some food in return. While walking a few miles wasn't a big deal for Naruto, it must have taken a toll on Gaara. And Gaara would have to walk that same distance just to get back 'home'.

Not only that, it was a cold night and it'll only be getting colder. Now, because of Naruto, Gaara would have to walk miles in freezing cold weather, spending what little amounts of energy he had just so he could get back to a section of street he felt most comfortable and safest sleeping on.

A few months from now it will be snowing. Naruto wondered if Gaara had a warm place to stay for the winter. Probably not. Gaara wasn't the only person in this predicament and Naruto knows he can't help everybody. But in this moment, Gaara is right in front of him. He could do something for Gaara. He had to take some responsibility for what he did.

"Hey, Gaara...did you wanna spend the night over at my place? It's pretty cold outside..."


	2. Sheltered

**A/N** : As far as plot goes, it's a work in progress. I'm pretty much making it up as I go. When writing this chapter, I realized I've portrayed Gaara pretty ooc (out-of-character). I hope you all still enjoy and thanks so much for all the reviews, favorites, and follows! :-)

Lost & Found

Chapter #02 - Sheltered

"ehhh" Naruto moaned. He wasn't ready. He definitely wasn't ready. HIs body felt heavy and his head was throbbing with an annoying ache. He so wasn't ready to wake up. with an exaggerated sigh, Naruto dramatically turned over to lay on his other side. But instead of landing on the left side of his bed, the blonde found himself falling onto his living room's hardwood floor. "Wha' the fuck?" Naruto questioned in a tired and confused voice. It took him a few moments of looking around to realize he wasn't in his room.

"Ah, that's right..." the blonde spoke to himself. He slowly remembered the previous night. He had asked Gaara if he wanted a place to crash for the night.

( _Flashback_ )

If he didn't know any better, Naruto would have thought he killed the guy's puppy. As soon as that question left his lips, he noticed the redhead had immediately tensed. Soon after, a succession of low and short raspy breaths could be heard coming from the shorter male. It looked like he was having some sort of panic attack. Naruto was worried Gaara was going to hyperventilate, but he didn't know what to do. The redhead stopped after a couple of minutes, slumping his shoulders down into a defeated posture. Although his expression stayed apathetic, Naruto could feel the depressed state the redhead had settled into.

Not knowing how to respond to that bizarre reaction, Naruto thought it would be best if he just ignored that it had happened. Naruto cleared his throat and went back to eating his fries. About fifteen minutes later, Gaara replied with an exhausted "...alright."

"Cool. I don't know about you, but I'm done with walking for the night. I'll get us a cab." Naruto let a genuine smile grace his lips. He had finished eating and settled on watching Gaara eat. He tried not to be obvious or creepy about it, it's just that he really enjoyed people watching. Human behavior in general was interesting to the blonde. Gaara either didn't notice or just didn't mind.

The redhead ate everything Naruto had bought for him in a hurried pace. He opened the apple slices last, and seemed confused on what the purpose of the little plastic container was for. "That's caramel dip." Naruto explained.

"..."

Naruto reached over and grabbed the little container. He pulled the top off and gave it back to Gaara. "You just scoop some up with the apples." Naruto supplemented his explanation with demonstrative hand movements. Gaara slowly did as instructed and took an experimental bite. Naruto noticed how Gaara's eyes slightly widened and a beginnings of a smile formed on his lips. The redhead seemed to really enjoy it; maybe he had a sweet tooth?

After Gaara had finished, Naruto got up and cleared the table. On his way over to the trash bin, Naruto called over to the redhead, "Let's go get that cab."

As the pair stood outside, Naruto noticed Gaara's anxiety acting up again. The redhead had some nervous tick going on with his hands and he had a sort of faraway look to his eyes. But then again, he could just be cold. The temperature had fallen even more and a light drizzle had started.

The blonde hailed a cab and let Gaara enter the backseat first. As Naruto climbed in, he told the cab driver where he wanted to go, "Toad Village please."

"That's the one on the intersection of Gamabunta and Fukasaku right?" the cab driver asked.

"That's the one." Naruto happily answered. Just about everybody knew where the Toad Village apartment complex was. Not only was the name unique, but it was established by the famous 'novelist' Jiraiya. The pervert had used it as a supplemental income source to fund his 'research' travels. He even lived in one of the apartments while he was in town. In time, Toad Village became somewhat of a local heritage site and tourist attraction. Even so, Jiraiya never raised the rent and even turned it into a gated facility so that residents could maintain their privacy. Naruto respected him for that.

The ride over to Naruto's apartment complex was a comfortable one. The taxi driver Tazuna and Naruto engaged in some small talk. Naruto liked the older man, he was blunt but an overall good guy. They talked mostly about bridge construction and the Land of Waves. Naruto appreciated how Tazuna didn't give him a hard time about Gaara, unlike that bitch manager at the burger joint. In fact, Tazuna acknowledged Gaara and included him into the conversation even though the redhead never actually spoke to him.

By the time Naruto was dropped off at Toad Village, he was in a sincerely happy mood. He even noticed that Gaara had relaxed a bit. The blonde punched in the code for the gate and headed towards his second floor apartment building. Like before, Gaara kept a five foot distance between himself and Naruto.

After unlocking his front door, Naruto walked in and turned on the light. Gaara loitered at the entryway before hesitantly stepping inside. Once he did, Naruto closed the door and flipped the lock, the sound triggering one of Gaara's anxiety attacks. Naruto felt bad and rushed a soft "sorry". He hadn't meant to scare the redhead, turning the lock was just habit.

"I'm not gonna hurt you or anything...and you can make yourself at home, or whatnot..." The blonde made sure to give the redhead his space, disappearing into the kitchen. Naruto poured himself a glass of water in a last ditch effort to avoid a hangover. He reflected back on his first encounter with Gaara - that glare he had given him. Naruto wanted to see that side of Gaara again, that confident and self-assured side.

After hearing some coughing and wheezing coming from Gaara, Naruto returned to the redhead's location. Gaara looked like he had calmed down but he also noticed how the redhead had wrapped his arms around his chest and slightly slivered.

Naruto gave the redhead a huge grin and warmly spoke, "You can take a shower if you want. It'll warm you up and I'll get you some dry clothes to wear."

Gaara looked at the blonde quizzically, head slightly tilted. Naruto continued, "I'll show you where the bathroom is," and made a waving motion for Gaara to follow him. After reaching his destination, the blonde flicked the light switch on, and stepped aside for Gaara to enter.

"Shower." The redhead softly spoke with a hint of wonder.

"uh...yeah shower..." Naruto responded. It seemed as if Gaara had a question, but Naruto couldn't figure out what it was.

"How does it work?" Gaara curiously asked.

"uhm...I guess like any other shower does...wait -" Naruto was slightly taken aback at his sudden realization, " - Gaara...have you ever had a shower?"

"No." was the redhead's simple reply.

"Oh." Naruto responded. He found himself even more interested in who Gaara was and what kind of life he has had. "Uh, I'll show you how it works." Naruto moved over to the shower stall and turned a metallic knob. "You just turn this thing here and water comes out of the showerhead. You turn this one over here to control the temperature - the closer to the red side you turn it, the hotter the water."

Gaara seemed to be intently focused on what Naruto was telling him. "I guess I'll leave you to it. But let me grab you some clean clothes really quick." With that, Naruto disappeared down the hallway. He returned with a stack of clothing in his hands and rested them on top of the bathroom counter. "Sorry if they don't fit. And you can leave your dirty ones on this counter too. If you need me, I'll be in the living room. Oh, wait. Let me show you these - this here is shampoo and this one is conditioner. You just pour some into your palm and wash your hair with it. And that over there is body wash. You can pour it onto that body puff thing and wash your body with that." Naruto made his best attempts at demonstrating his explanation with corresponding hand movements. "And you can dry off with that orange towel over there, that's the clean one."

It had been almost an hour now since Naruto had left Gaara, and the blonde was almost worried the redhead had drowned. While he'd been waiting for Gaara to finish, Naruto had thrown some pillows and blankets onto the couch, made some tea, changed into his favorite frog pajama pants, and settled on playing some video games. He paused the game when he heard the bathroom door open. "I'm in the living room!" Naruto called out.

Gaara slowly made his way over to Naruto. He wore the matching frog shirt to Naruto's pants and a pair of white baggy pajama shorts. With all that excess dirt removed, Gaara was actually quite attractive. "You enjoy your shower?" Naruto asked.

"hm" Gaara replied.

"So...never had a shower before, huh?"

"...something like it." was Gaara's only response.

Naruto noticed how Gaara looked a little nervous. Without a word, the redhead had come to stand in front of Naruto, who was currently sitting in the middle of the couch in a wide open leg posture. At first, Naruto thought Gaara wanted to sit down and was about to move over for him. Before he could, Gaara had dropped down to his knees. Naruto immediately froze, not sure what Gaara's intentions were. It wasn't until Gaara's hands reached out to grasp at his pants that Naruto realized what was going on. Startled, the blonde pulled the redhead's hands away with a rushed, "No, no, no, no" and quickly stood up. Somehow, looking down from a standing position was even worse. Gaara raised his head, slightly tilted it to the side, and gave Naruto a confused look.

"Uh, look...you don't need to do that. I, uh...could you stand up?"

Gaara did as requested and waited for Naruto to continue. However, the blonde was trying to get his words right in his head before he spoke. Gaara was starting to get anxious, "You want me to turn around?"

"Huh? Why would...oh, gods no! I don't want anything like that - no sex stuff!"

"...I do not understand. Why am I here?"

"Uh, to spend the night. But not that way, just sleep. I was going to stay on the couch so that you could have the bed." Naruto tried explaining the situation, but it didn't seem like Gaara was understanding. "Because you helped me out. I'm trying to repay you for it."

"So, I get to stay here tonight? And I don't have to...pay you for it?"

"Yeah, something like that."

It still didn't look like Gaara completely understood, but he wasn't nervous or depressed looking anymore.

"So...awkwardness aside, let me just save my game and I'll show you where you're sleeping tonight."

"Awkwardness. what is awkwardness?"

"Hm? It's uh...It's when you uh...It's awkward." Was Naruto's brilliant response. He could tell that Gaara was about to reply with a 'what is awkward?' question, so he tried to deepen his explanation. "It's like a strange feeling. Well, I guess it's more of an uncomfortable feeling, actually. And it's also kinda of an embarrassing one too"

"Hm. That is interesting. And what is 'save my game'?"

"It's uh...saving a video game."

"Video game?"

"Uh...yeah. Guess you've never seen one, have you?"

Gaara shook is head no.

"I can show you. Here, sit down." Naruto sat down and patted the cushion next to him. Gaara did as requested, pulling his knees up and hugging them with his arms. Naruto picked his controller up and un-paused his game. Naruto could hear Gaara gasp when the images on the television screen had started to move. He glanced over at the redhead and smiled at his expression - big eyed and mouth slightly open.

"You ever watch t.v.? That black box thing in front of us?"

"...no..."

"Seriously, how does that even happen. Have you been living under a rock or something?"

"No...how does one live under a rock?"

"That was just an expression. But, hey, since your liking this so much I'll play it for a little bit if you want?"

"Yes. I would like to watch more."

"And you can play too. Here," Naruto handed Gaara a PS4 controller after adding Gaara into the game. "It's called Minecraft. You just kinda run around and gather materials and build stuff. But it's a lot more fun than it sounds." The two spent the next couple of hours playing the game, with Naruto explaining game controls and how to craft objects. Naruto was surprised at how fast Gaara could pick things up. It seemed all he needed was a good explanation and he was good to go. This made Naruto wonder even more about how Gaara could be so uninformed about things.

Once Naruto decided he couldn't stay up anymore, he had saved the game and promised to let Gaara play again in the morning. With a yawn, the blonde stood up. "Come on, I'll show you where you're sleeping."

Naruto led Gaara down the hallway and into his bedroom. "There's the bed. If you need anything, I'll be out sleeping on the couch."

"T.V."

"Hmm? You want more t.v...?"

"That is t.v." Gaara said and pointed at the smaller television Naruto kept in his bedroom.

"Oh, yeah. You were just making an observation, huh?" It seems Gaara liked learning new things.

"...can you play games on this?"

"well...you could, but I don't have the game system set up over here. And we should really be getting some sleep." Naruto was getting worried for Gaara's health. In the past two hours, his coughing had increased in frequency.

Gaara fiddled with the ends of the frog shirt he was wearing and softly stated, "I can't sleep when it's silent."

Naruto had just barely heard it. So, Gaara didn't like silence? The blonde could relate to that. "Let me turn my computer on. I have the t.v. set up to mirror my laptop. I'll put on a video for you."

"Computer?"

"Yeah. I'll show it to you tomorrow. It's really difficult to explain." After turning his laptop on, Naruto opened up the youtube site. "I'm going to put on a playlist. That just means a list of videos. That way, something will be playing all night."

When the youtube playlist had started, Gaara startled. He was even more fascinated with the television than he was before. The redhead stepped up to the t.v. screen and touched it. "I don't understand."

"It's a moving picture with sound." Naruto explained. He could have watched Gaara's reaction to technology all night, but he really wanted the redhead to get some sleep.

"Moving picture? That is interesting."

"Yep. This is an ASMR video playlist. It may look weird, but the sounds are supposed to be relaxing. Let me know if you get scared, and I'll change it. I'm playing Ephemeral Rift - he's not your basic ASMRer." Naruto explained, letting out a small chuckle. "Wish Sasuke would understand that. I like to watch these videos to help me sleep or study or whatever. One time, I was on the school roof and I'd fallen asleep to the video where Paul was in his Margaret character. It was that trigger sounds test one - it was super weird and funny. But anyway, I fell asleep and Sasuke had found me and it just _**had**_ to be the part where Margaret was topless and wrapped up in bubble wrap and doing this sort of creepy dance thing. Sasuke went on and on about how I have some weird bubble wrap fetish - he _**still**_ thinks I have one." Naruto knew Gaara didn't understand anything he just said, which was fine with him. The blonde just liked having someone around who would listen to him.

Naruto decided to start the playlist off on one of the Candy Man videos. "Alright, you should be all set. Is there anything else you need?"

"No. I am fine. Thank you for the moving picture"

"Heh, you can call it a video. And in case you're wondering, videos you watch and video games you play."

"Hm. I think I understand. Thank you for the video."

"Alright, then. I'm gonna go lay down. Goodnight." Naruto flashed Gaara a big grin before leaving. It was pretty late - must have been around five in the morning by now. Once Naruto crawled onto the couch, he instantly fell asleep.

( _End of Flashback_ )

Naruto stretched and walked down the hallway. He peeked into the kitchen and spotted the time on his microwave - it was only ten o'clock, no wonder why he felt as if he'd gotten hardly any sleep.

He quietly opened the door to his bedroom and peeked inside. Gaara was still fast asleep on the bed. In fact, he looked he was having the best sleep of his life. As soon as Naruto shut the door, he heard a few excessively loud knocks on his front door.

Fearing the banging would wake Gaara up, Naruto rushed to open the door. He was greeted by a very fatigued looking Sasuke and Kiba.

"Wow, you guys look like shit." Naruto stated.

"Is that how you treat the people who come to check on your well-being?" Kiba replied.

"Hm?"

"Look, we kinda feel like shit. We just left you on the street with some stranger...so, I guess we wanted to check and see if you were okay."

Naruto felt a warm feeling spreading within. He knew his friends cared for him, but it was nice to hear it out loud from time to time.

"So, what happened after we left?" Sasuke asked, pushing his way past Naruto and making himself at home on Naruto's couch.. Sometimes Naruto regretting giving them the code to the front gate.

"And why did you sleep on your couch?"

Naruto shushed Sasuke, "I'll tell you, but you guys gotta keep it down or you'll wake Gaara."

"Gaara?" Kiba questioned.

"So...you took him home." Sasuke stated.

"Well that's...weird." Kiba finished.

"I felt bad...and he looked sick." Naruto defended.

"Did you wrap him in bubble wrap?" Sasuke asked through a smirk.

"Dammit Sasuke, I've told you a million times - I _**don't**_ have a bubble wrap fetish!" Naruto quickly covered his mouth with his hand as soon as he realized he'd shouted, but it was too late. He heard the bedroom door slowly open and cursed himself for his stupidity.

"Ha - and you tell _**us**_ to be quiet" Kiba snickered while Naruto shot him a glare.

Gaara had slowly made his way down the hallway and into the living room. Naruto couldn't help but to think he looked absolutely adorable. The frog shirt was hanging off the redhead's right shoulder as he rubbed his eye with his left hand and held onto Naruto's plush fox in the other.

"Uh, sorry. I didn't mean to wake you." Naruto explained in an embarrassed tone.

"That okay." Gaara spoke in hoarse, raw voice.

"Aw shit. You sound pretty sick. Maybe you should go lie back down?" the blonde commented.

Naruto noticed that Sasuke gave Gaara a long stare before getting off the couch. "Well, we're going to get going now. We really just wanted to see if you actually made it home or not."

"Eh...yeah..." Naruto followed Sasuke and Kiba to the door. "Well, thanks for coming by."

"We should hang out soon - preferably when my head is not in so much agony." Kiba groaned.

Naruto chuckled. "I know how you feel. We'll do something after school tomorrow."

"Hn." Sasuke agreed. He turned to leave, but paused. "Tsunade still has the free clinic, doesn't she?" As soon as he finished his sentence, Sasuke walked away. He wasn't expecting an answer and Naruto knew that.

Despite how he acted the previous night, Sasuke was actually a good guy who was capable of feeling empathy - he was just too stubborn to admit it. Truth is, Sasuke has done a lot of things that he now regrets. Seeing someone like Gaara had triggered a lot of old memories he'd rather forget. Whenever that happens, Sasuke tends to act like a complete asshole.

As for Kiba...well, sometimes Kiba was just a short-tempered, impulsive jerk at times. In fact, he'd bullied Naruto when they younger. It wasn't until about four years earlier that they'd become friends. Naruto kicked Kiba's ass in a school fight. Somehow this earned Kiba's respect or something, Naruto forgets how he explained it. But anyway, Kiba does have his upside; he is, after all, a loyal friend.

After closing the front door, Naruto headed back into the living room to check on Gaara. Naruto didn't find him there and assumed the redhead had went back to bed. Before going to the bedroom, Naruto stopped off in the kitchen and made some tea.

Hot tea in hand, Naruto quietly opened the bedroom door and looked inside. Gaara was lying on the bed reading some magazines.

Intrigued, Naruto walked into the room. "I thought you couldn't read -" he abruptly stopped his sentence as he realized what magazines the redhead was looking at. Naruto's face flushed a bright red, and for the first time in his life he was actually speechless - he should really learn to hide his porn better.


End file.
